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What oil boiler/burner to buy?

  • 02-02-2008 6:46pm
    #1
    Registered Users Posts: 2,340 ✭✭✭


    The g/f and myself recently bought our first house and are getting everything ready in it. I went up to it this afternoon to do some work and discovered that some scum had stolen our oil burner :mad:. They took the one in the house next door too.
    It was one of the outdoor ones. The whole thing was lifted.
    Anyhow, now that I'll be getting a replacement, what is the best/most efficient one to go for?
    The house is a 3 bed semi with attic conversion. Approx 1500sq/ft with 11 rads around the house.

    Any suggestions :confused:

    Thanks


Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 1,775 ✭✭✭JamesM


    That's bad :mad:
    If you do mean everything gone, then a Grant or Firebird 50/70 or 50/90 should be fine. If it's completely outside, both do cabin-packs. If it's just the burner that's gone, I find Riello the best.
    Jim.


  • Registered Users Posts: 11,220 ✭✭✭✭Lex Luthor


    Firebird have units I think called heatpacs (slimline models)

    what is this world coming to?

    will your insurance cover it?


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,340 ✭✭✭Cmar-Ireland


    Yeah, the whole thing was lifted. It was in a metal enclosure. TBH I don't even know the make, but it was the burner and boiler in the enclosure. Nothing left there now except wires and pipes sticking out of the concrete base.


  • Registered Users Posts: 11,220 ✭✭✭✭Lex Luthor


    Yeah, the whole thing was lifted. It was in a metal enclosure. TBH I don't even know the make, but it was the burner and boiler in the enclosure. Nothing left there now except wires and pipes sticking out of the concrete base.

    did any of the oil leak out of the tank?


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,340 ✭✭✭Cmar-Ireland


    Lex Luthor wrote: »
    did any of the oil leak out of the tank?

    Luckly, no. None leaked.
    Pity the fúckers didn't get electrocuted with they cut the power cables :mad:


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  • Registered Users Posts: 1,775 ✭✭✭JamesM


    Jeeeez - Cabin-pacs are a great idea - but that would make you go back to the traditional boiler house :(
    They are heavy -to take 2, they had to have a truck or big van of some kind.
    Jim.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 5,756 ✭✭✭demanufactured


    your house insurance should cover that.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,340 ✭✭✭Cmar-Ireland


    Got some prices for a Grant 70-90 cabinpac. €800 for a regular and €1200 for a condensing boiler. For the extra efficiency, is it worth going for the condensing model?

    Thanks


  • Registered Users Posts: 647 ✭✭✭eddie73


    Hello. Grant oil burners are very good indeed, but because they are so light and portable, they have become a target for theft.

    you should consider getting a stanley stove in your living room or kitchen. you will get about 7kw of heat off them and when the fire goes out, the heat will remain for hours. You can get one that heats rads and a hot tank, that can burn wood pellets, solid fuel or gas.

    I got my stanley disconnected in the kitchen for a grant on the outside of the house, the stanley range burned oil, was noisy and smelled of fumes, but the heat is badly missed in the house. Also I have the prospect of getting the grant boiler stolen hanging over me.


  • Registered Users Posts: 14,229 ✭✭✭✭ednwireland


    got a grants multipass a couple of years ago didnt go with the condensing as the return temps on a standard radiator setup isnt really low enough for the condenser to work
    great boiler very efficient compared to the 20 year old thing i had before anyway


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  • Registered Users Posts: 2,340 ✭✭✭Cmar-Ireland


    Just to update our situation. The insurance did indeed cover the loss, so the funds are safely lodged in my account.
    Now I am wondering if I should put a bit of extra cash towards the 90-120 outdoor condensing boiler, or will the 50-90 be enough?
    Our house is a 3 bed semi, with 12 rads. But the garage is plumbed for a rad, so it will probably be fitting one there too.

    Which would be better for me?


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,775 ✭✭✭JamesM


    My boiler is a 50/70 in a 3 bed semi, and that is plenty for me. I would be confident that a 90 would be fine.
    Jim.


  • Registered Users Posts: 245 ✭✭Aeneas


    got a grants multipass a couple of years ago didnt go with the condensing as the return temps on a standard radiator setup isnt really low enough for the condenser to work
    great boiler very efficient compared to the 20 year old thing i had before anyway

    Thinking of replacing my boiler. Grateful to know why a condenser does not work properly with a standard radiator setup? Also the significance of the numeric descriptions "50/70" "90/120" etc


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 2,290 ✭✭✭ircoha


    Aeneas wrote: »
    Thinking of replacing my boiler. Grateful to know why a condenser does not work properly with a standard radiator setup? Also the significance of the numeric descriptions "50/70" "90/120" etc

    AFAIK1 The theory with condensing boilers is that the return temp needs to be 45 degrees C or less for the boiler to actually condense and be that extra bit more efficient.

    Therefore the theory goes on to suggest that a system that was designed on maybe a return temp of 60 C will have rads sized for this: hotter water => smaller rads, so lower temp from CB will, in theory not be warm enough.

    AFAIK2: 50/70 etc refers to the btu range of the different boilers with oil burners u can change the nozzle size to go from 90 to 120


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,775 ✭✭✭JamesM


    ircoha wrote: »
    AFAIK1 The theory with condensing boilers is that the return temp needs to be 45 degrees C or less for the boiler to actually condense and be that extra bit more efficient.

    Therefore the theory goes on to suggest that a system that was designed on maybe a return temp of 60 C will have rads sized for this: hotter water => smaller rads, so lower temp from CB will, in theory not be warm enough.

    AFAIK2: 50/70 etc refers to the btu range of the different boilers with oil burners u can change the nozzle size to go from 90 to 120

    In the good old days, all boilers were rated in BTUs British Thermal Units.

    I am not an expert on condensing boilers, they are quite a new phenomenon.

    Condensing boilers have a water drain from the boiler to collect, and drain, the condensate. Many boilers are set at 60 C because people do not need them any higher to give adequate heat to their houses and domestic hot water.
    In my experience, with a condensing boiler, so much heat is extracted from the gasses as they pass through the baffles and then the tubes of a condensing boiler, that they cool and condense.
    Condensation also happens in many modern non condensing boilers, where the gasses exit into a tall flue or existing chimney - water pours back down the flue. This can cause corrosion in the boiler (and sometimes dampness in a bedroom or landing adjacent to the chimney). Part of the reason condensing boilers cost more is because stainless steel has to be used in parts of the boiler.
    Jim.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,340 ✭✭✭Cmar-Ireland


    How would I know if a condensing boiler is right for our house? We will be getting the new boiler soon, and reading about return temps has left me confused. How do I know if the temps will allow the boiler to operate in it's most efficent mode?

    :confused:


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,775 ✭✭✭JamesM


    How would I know if a condensing boiler is right for our house? We will be getting the new boiler soon, and reading about return temps has left me confused. How do I know if the temps will allow the boiler to operate in it's most efficent mode?

    :confused:

    As far as I know, a condensing boiler will work with any system - the gasses condense because so much heat has been removed and transferred into the surrounding water.

    An underfloor heating system uses quite low temperatures and therefore a condensing boiler is suitable with it. It doesn't mean that a radiator system cannot use a condensing boiler. If you run a conventional boiler below about 60c, the gasses may condense, and this can cause corrosion. One of the reasons a condensing boiler is more expensive is because the parts that come in contact with the condensate are made of stainless steel to avoid corrosion.
    Jim.


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